Innholdsfortegnelse for January 2022 i Boating NZ

A FOCUS ON meeting local tourism demand and overriding Covid challenges has led Explore Group to launch new expedition-style cruises on the Hauraki Gulf. Despite the uncertainty created by Delta and alert level changes, William Goodfellow, Explore managing director, said the company sees an opportunity to grow and invest in unique tourism experiences in Auckland and the Gulf. “Unless you have your own boat the Hauraki Gulf is not easily accessible for local tourists and travellers, so the cruises are all about creating a way for Kiwis to explore their own backyard.” Explore Expedition Cruises will launch on December 31, 2021, with two, three, or five-night cruises to visit islands in the Gulf, including Kawau, Rangitoto, Motutapu, Motuihe, Rotoroa, Ponui, Tiritiri Matangi, Waiheke, Coromandel, and Great Barrier/Aotea. This is the…

Like the rest of the range, the 656’s distinctive styling – largely the result of function dictating form – is impossible to ignore. The boat’s aesthetics can be divisive – you either like an Innovision’s looks or you don’t – but the semicustom boatbuilder’s offerings certainly get people’s attention. When we launched the 656 Explorer and a smaller 515 centre-console chase boat at Sandspit, passersby couldn’t help stopping by to look over the boats and chat. Innovision’s boats are defined by their plumb bows, but as company principal Simon Minoprio points out, their bow shape is only part of what makes them perform so well: “It’s the complete package – the hull shape, including the bow, deadrise progression, raised sheer, chines and strake positioning.” The boats are designed jointly by…

AT THE NORTHERN-MOST TIP OF HOBSONVILLE POINT LIES CATALINA BAY, A SEASIDE COMMUNITY LIKE NO OTHER, OFFERING AN UNPARALLELED COASTAL LIFESTYLE. Formerly the preserve of the New Zealand Air Force, this historic precinct takes its name from the Catalina flying boats that were once housed in its hangars. Restoring and re-purposing several of Catalina Bay’s original buildings has enabled the historic neighbourhood to retain its unique character while creating a contemporary village environment. A coastal boardwalk, ferry terminal, pilates studio, wide selection of premium eateries and even an artisan farmers’ market enhance the atmosphere and authenticity of this seaside neighbourhood. Willis Bond has carefully master-planned and refurbished seven heritage buildings in Catalina Bay into what is now an award-winning waterfront precinct. The next stage in the works will see the…

MARINE MANUFACTURER TruDesign Plastics Ltd has expanded its production and research capabilities by relocating to a new 3000m2 facility at the Airport Oaks precinct close to Auckland’s International Airport. The move, which will allow TruDesign to increase production capabilities and meet growing international demand, comes after the company suffered a fire at its old premises, where thankfully no one was injured. The new facility is 30% larger, more modern and closer to logistics companies around the airport district. The TruDesign brand is marketed throughout Europe, North America and the Asia-Pacific region, with its underwater seacock system increasingly specified in new-builds as the preferred product by international boatbuilders. Designed and made in New Zealand, TruDesign’s composite through-hull fittings and seacocks are recognised for eliminating the traditional concerns of corrosion and electrolysis.…

THE BOAT WORKS has set the record for the heaviest vessel ever to be hauled out of the water on the Gold Coast – the 292-tonne, 145.7m Benetti superyacht, Mistress. Despite inclement conditions The Boat Works’ team took just two hours to lift the vessel out of the Coomera River to the hardstand where Mistress is undergoing a brief period of maintenance. “This is an historic milestone for us and the Gold Coast,” says Shane Subichin, General Manager at The Boat Works. “Our 300-tonne lift we call ‘Rhino’ has proven itself a very versatile machine that can adapt to any vessel. “There’s increasing demand from larger vessels which are rising in number in our region. The influx in supply has spurred additional major marine infrastructure, with construction underway on Stage…

FORTY-EIGHT COVERED MARINA BERTHS will be unveiled at Sanctuary Cove Marina in a first for the industry in the southern hemisphere. The final stage of Sanctuary Cove Marina’s upgrades, the 14.5m covered berths provide a service for luxury boat owners looking to dock on Australian shores. There’s been a demand for the covered berths, with the majority of the spaces being booked during construction. The protective sails have been designed to integrate with Sanctuary Cove’s aesthetic. The shade structures resemble ribbons in the breeze. Superior Jetties commercial project manager, Andy Vollmer said the covered berths provided a design challenge: “We took every measure to ensure the facilities would provide the type of protection and care these luxury vessels require, such as the superyachts we welcome regularly, and would integrate perfectly…

SKIPPERI NZ, a boat-sharing service, has added geofencing to its Auckland fleet of Haines Hunter SF545 boats. With geofencing, Skipperi will now be able to notify its users about shallow water and hazardous zones, speed restrictions or maximum speeds in harbour areas and protected areas for birds and sea mammals. It piggybacks on the onboard chartplotter’s GPS signal, showing a notification on the plotter screen, as well as emitting an audible warning signal. “With an active boating community, we want to take the lead in utilising new technology to ensure smarter and safer boating,” says Skipperi New Zealand CEO, Alexander Rosenthal. “In future we see the potential to work with environmental organisations to protect other sensitive locations, like pest-free islands and areas where sea life is endangered.” Originally established in…

Not even new Covid variants and ongoing supply chain woes can stop the avalanche of new boating gear that’s coming to market in 2022. Masked and sanitised, Boating New Zealand’s Craig Ritchie went to METSTRADE – the world’s largest boating parts and accessories trade show – for a first-hand look at what’s coming to store shelves over the next 12 months. Held in Amsterdam, Netherlands each November, METSTRADE is the world’s largest marine equipment trade show – a global supermarket of boat bits and marine accessories that’s quite unlike anything else in the world. Off limits to the public, METS is where the boatbuilders and marine equipment stores go to shop, and where all the newest nautical gear makes its global debut. In a normal year METSTRADE attracts around 20,000…

“The UK is not ideal for windsurfing, but I was determined to somehow get involved.” Does Pete Smith have the best job in New Zealand? As owner-operator of the Auckland Windsurf School in Pt Chevalier, Auckland, he’s doing what he loves, what he has always wanted to do, five days a week. And yes, he goes windsurfing on his days off. Pete was raised 30 miles from the sea in Essex. His early encounters with the sport of windsurfing were as a young boy fishing at a local pond and combing through magazines for pictures of windsurfing. “The UK is not ideal for windsurfing, but I was determined to somehow get involved,” he recalls. “It was pretty massive in the 1980s. I was hooked on the exotic photos we saw…

Like many motorists I’ve hurtled past, noted the masts, wheelhouses and boat bits, and kept on driving. But this time was different – I needed to find information on the scow Owhiti and her legendary skipper Jock McKinnon. “They might just know,” I thought. A group of older men clustered around the reception desk at the front of the crowded old building. “Well,” one of them said, “I think Peter sailed in her – I’ll give him a call.” Peter duly turned up; a stocky and sprightly senior with a face wrinkled by a life of laughing and seafaring. We had a delightful long yarn about Owhiti, Skipper McKinnon, scows and scowmen. A history he brought out of the books and into life. Conversation soon gravitated towards our location, the…

On November 17, eight months after Emirates Team New Zealand successfully defended the America’s Cup, the Defender, the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron and Emirates Team New Zealand, and the Challenger of Record, Royal Yacht Squadron Ltd and their representative team INEOS Britannia, announced the Protocol of the 37th America’s Cup. The Protocol sets the foundations and rules of participation for all teams in the 37th America’s Cup and records the items of mutual consent under the America’s Cup Deed of Gift agreed between the Defender and the Challenger of Record which establishes the basis for a multi-challenger event. Cost reduction has been a key consideration as part of the balance in the development of the AC37 Protocol including: • Teams are only permitted to build one new AC75 •…

A new Northland-built superyacht is the first to launch in New Zealand in over a year. Motoryacht Isla, the first superyacht to splash in the country since early 2020, has completed her shakedown cruise in local waters. The 24m vessel, with naval architecture by Kevin Dibley, is an explorer-style yacht created for adventurous cruising around the South Pacific and New Zealand’s deep south. She’s tough and stylish with exceptional seaworthiness. Featuring plenty of space for onboard family living, steelhulled Isla is equipped with a shallow draft and outstanding stability for no-limits adventures. M/Y Isla’s owners collected a team of New Zealand experts to bring her to fruition. Using Harbourside Boat Works, supported by Auckland-based JP Marine’s project management for construction and fit-out, Isla was finished to a high standard by…

Martin, Adam and Johnny joined me for the leg from Stewart Island to Fiordland. We had heard stories of yachts waiting many weeks for an opening in the weather to cross Foveaux Strait and round the notorious Puysegur Point in to Preservation Inlet, so when a weather window opened sooner than expected, the guys wasted no time getting to Oban and prepping for Fiordland. The advice we’d been given was to head to Port William on the northeast coast of Stewart Island and use it as a jumping off point for the overnight passage. At 80 nautical miles and with the long summer days, the passage could be achieved during daylight hours, but if conditions deteriorated or if the currents were stronger than predicted, we did not want to risk…

From modest beginnings 11 years ago when Peter Carlson first discovered Brig, Family Boats’ RIB sales have grown to such an extent Peter expects to sell hundreds this year, most of them Brigs. The Brig Eagle 6.7m and Eagle 8m models are among the best-selling in Family Boats’ current range. The two Eagles are birds of a feather, with versatile layouts, good quality fittings, similar trim levels, the same high-quality Orca (Hypalon) tubes and comparable performance and handling. The Eagle 8 benefits from extra length, of course, which translates into more space on deck, allowing a drop-in cockpit table, an isotherm refrigerator under the (larger) helm seats and a bigger centre console with a plumbed electric toilet (macerator and holding tank). The bigger boat also enjoys more console real estate…

So believes Hamilton’s Stewart (Stu) Hardy – one of four owners who signed up to share the M55 – freshly-arrived from the Australian builder’s factory. And Hardy should know – the M55 is his third Ownaship vessel. His exposure to the company’s syndicate philosophy began about eight years ago with a tenth-share in a Rayglass 4000. In 2018 he swapped that for a sixth-share in a Maritimo 51, and then, spurred on by a wife keen on longer voyages, upgraded to a quarter-share in the new M55. The deal, he confesses, was signed ‘sight-unseen’ – by mid-December the couple had yet to set eyes on the vessel. “Lockdown prevented us from visiting Auckland – but we weren’t fussed. We’re very familiar with the Ownaship operation and, based on our research,…

Eighteen years ago, Maritimo redefined the long-range cruising motor yacht with the enclosed flybridge concept it is internationally-recognised for today. Since then, Maritimo has continually evolved and refined the concept, with close collaboration between its Australian in-house design team and a growing family of Maritimo owners around the world. Maritimo’s Director of Design, Tom Barry-Cotter said, “The all new M75 has stemmed from the most in-depth design and development process ever undertaken in Maritimo history. From conceptualisation, it has taken two years of development with Maritimo’s design division and collaborating owners.” Maritimo’s Australian-based production facilities underwent extensive upgrades and expansions, completed in 2019. The facilities were designed for manufacturing larger vessels, such as the M75. The global reveal of the new flagship marks the seventh launch or reveal for Maritimo…

Puzzle no.290 Across 7. _____ hole – hole in deck that anchor cable passes through (5) 8. Unrolls and spreads sail (7) 10. Relative position in sailing race series (7) 11. Marine plants including seaweeds (5) 12. Oceanic _____ – geological depression below sea level (5) 14. Pied _____ – wading bird seen in NZ wetlands and coastal areas (5) 15. Location of South Island port in photo (5) 17. _____ ray – marine creature found in NZ estuaries and harbours (5) 20. Ridge of rocks under surface of sea (5) 21. Sailing enthusiast (7) 23. Sounds like military vessel, but is in fact armed helicopter (7) 24. Qualified coastal navigator (5) Down 1. NZ two-person sailing dinghy developed in 1951 by John Spencer (6) 2. ____ hull – another…

You don’t give any thought to your fridge temperature at home, open the door and yes everything is cold. On a boat, if your fridge system works off the engine, then you will have to run the engine at least twice a day to try to maintain a stable temperature. A hot day with the engine not running, the temperature in the fridge quickly increases to a point of food spoilage and warm drink. Modern electric Dc refrigeration changes everything, it keeps the fridge or freezer at a maintained stable temperature. Your only job now is to maintain battery capacity. With advancements in solar panels, alternators and battery technology, the amount of engine running required for an engine driven system should be the same for battery charging. While the engine…

“Absolutely no comparison,” was my instinctive response and I have had no reason to alter that view since then. Ignoring (or at least partly so) significantly bigger issues such as bombs and bullets, let’s just make some sailing comparisons. The inevitability of war in the days leading up to its outbreak on Sunday, September 3, 1939 resulted in the cancellation or curtailment of many of the UK’s scheduled sailing events: the National 12 national championships, Lowestoft Sea Week, Dartmouth Royal Regatta and Burnham Week, among numerous others. However, on Saturday the 2nd, various races took place throughout the country, much of which was enjoying pleasant weather with a light and variable southerly breeze. But the following morning a 12-Metre race in Torbay was abandoned when a launch approached each of…

Unique partnership between Lotto NZ, Coastguard and Emirates Team New Zealand sees America’s Cup chase boats return to water, refitted as high-spec new rescue vessels for Coastguard, thanks to $9.8M of lottery funding. When the crew of Coastguard Great Barrier received their brand new, high-spec rescue boat recently, they had a lot of people to thank. Theirs was the first of 26 new vessels to be added to Coastguard New Zealand’s fleet this summer, thanks to a unique partnership with Lotto NZ and Emirates Team New Zealand – 100% funded by a $9.8 million lottery grant made possible by the millions of Kiwis who play Lotto NZ games each year. Originally used as chase boats during this year’s America’s Cup, the boats have been refitted to meet the specific demands…

Uncertainty over Covid restrictions and organisational issues has forced the cancellation of the next edition of one of New Zealand’s biggest and best-loved sailing events, the CRC Bay of Islands Sailing Week. The event, which would have been celebrating its 20th anniversary in January 2022, will now postpone celebrations until the following year’s regatta. Organisers say the decision was not taken lightly, with the committee deliberating for weeks over whether the volunteer-run event could go ahead in one way or another. The committee considered several options to make the event happen, including running a scaled-down, on-water only event, without the shorebased entertainment side of the regatta. But a host of difficulties have conspired to scupper the event, including knock-on effects from Covid, and the added complexities of a new marine…

Two race fleets will assemble in Alicante, the Spanish home of the Race, in late 2022 before a mid-January 2023 start for leg-one of the around the world race The start date for leg one of The Ocean Race 2022-23 has been confirmed with both IMOCA and VO65 fleets scheduled to burst from the starting blocks on Sunday, January 15, 2023 from Alicante on Spain’s Mediterranean coast. The Ocean Race is one of the greatest challenges in sailing and the toughest test of a team in sport – over 31,000 nautical miles (57,000km) around the planet, finishing in the Mediterranean in Genova, Italy in the summer of 2023. www.theoceanrace.com…

With a retail value of over $280,000, the prize is centred around Surtees’ 7.5m 750 Game Fisher enclosed cabin featuring Surtees’ SiQ™ technology package. Designed for extended offshore cruising, the 2022 Grand Prize boat has a 400-litre underfloor fuel tank, 530 litres of water ballast, an 80-litre freshwater tank, hot water shower and sink, Engel fridge and an electric toilet. The cabin boasts twin roof hatches and sliding rear bulkhead windows, twin Hi Tech Plastic carbon deluxe seats and three Exalto Pantagraph wipers. The Grand Prize is supplied with $5000 worth of Okuma fishing gear, a pair of Ocean Blue outriggers, a washdown hose and numerous other practical fishing features to complement its large, uncluttered fishing cockpit. Clothed in an eye-catching wrap from Brave Design, the 2022 Grand Prize features…

A NEW ZEALAND FIRST BENETEAU OCEANIS 40.1 was recently launched in Auckland. Following in the wake of her elder sister, the Oceanis 51.1, this new generation 40.1 offers unparalleled living space and superb performance for a yacht this size. Her Kiwi owners opted for the First Line edition, with a deep-draught keel, taller mast and locally-made North Sails for greater performance. The interior has a stunning light wood finish with a comfortable three-cabin layout and a C-shaped galley. This award-winning model is a fantastic family-sized cruiser, with a wide tulip-shaped hull. All lines and halyards run back neatly to the double helm stations, now located further aft, making single-handed sailing a breeze. www.36degrees.nz…

IGUANA YACHTS has launched a new edition of its bestseller: the White Iguana X100 version. In three years around 20 Iguana X100s have been delivered all over the world and three orders for this new model have already been received. Iguana Yachts offers the most rugged and practical all-terrain amphibious RIB in the world. This boat carries 2 x 300hp outboards giving a top speed of up to 50 knots. Equipped with the latest technology and tested for over 10,000 hours, the Iguana Mobility System ensures reliability and allows getting into and out of the boat in complete safety, even in waves of 1.2m. The landing gear deploys and locks in eight seconds. The tracks can tackle any terrain (sand, pebbles, mud, inclined slope up to 40%) and reach a…

BUILT BY AARON BEATTIE and his crew at Lifestyle Yachts (near Thames) to NZ survey standards, the Roger Hill 16m powercat Omahu (Breath) was launched recently. She is berthed in Westhaven, Auckland. Omahu’s structure is entirely foam-cored composite with fibreglass skins and epoxy resin, built from an ATL Composites’ premade, pre-cut panel system and engineered using the DnVGL standard to ensure that it is a very tough and robust structure. The design brief was for a cat capable of long-range adventures around the bottom of the South Island in summer and cruising the Pacific Islands in winter. An emphasis on comfort rather than speed was important with plenty of space for two couples to live aboard, along with the equipment and storage required for long voyages to remote places with…

PROPSPEED HAS BEEN ENDORSED by Electronic Navigation Ltd (ENL), an innovator in wide-angle sonar technology relied upon by anglers and oceanographers worldwide. ENL has tested the Propspeed Foulfree foul-release coating and found it to be effective in keeping transducers clean and free from marine growth. “We installed our new WASSP wideband transducer on a 48-foot Riviera in March 2020 and applied Foulfree,” says Gareth Hodson, managing director, ENL Group. “In December 2020, we hauled the boat out for hull maintenance, and there was no growth on the transducer. After a quick freshwater wash down, the transducer was as good as new. We applied Foulfree to the entire transducer, including the face of it. The performance of the WASSP worked as expected, mapping the ocean at 20 knots!” WASSP Multibeam Sounder…

A true story: Some years ago, a family group in a runabout was travelling across a large lake in windy but not unpleasant conditions when the skipper’s cap blew off his head. He immediately stopped the boat and leapt into the water to retrieve it. He was wearing a lifejacket but it wasn’t securely fastened, so it slipped off when he jumped in. A strong swimmer, he left it behind, retrieved his hat and turned to swim back to the boat. But the strong breeze was blowing the boat away from him. A family member tossed him a line but it fell short and the boat quickly moved away from him faster than he could swim. Within minutes the boat had drifted so far away the man was no longer…

That’s exactly what the owners of this Excess 15 sailing cat did, picking her up from the factory in Bordeaux (Excess is a brand under the Beneteau umbrella) and bringing her back across the Atlantic, through the Caribbean and Panama Canal, and down through the Pacific Islands – in the midst of a pandemic. By the time she got home, she already had 15,000 trouble-free nautical miles under her hulls. Binx – named after the magical cat Thackery Binx in the 1993 movie Hocus Pocus – departed from Europe in October 2020 and arrived at Opua in the Bay of Islands in June this year. She has been based out of Auckland so far, but her owners have plans to get back up to the islands as soon as possible.…

Aotea is a South Pacific 42 from the board of American designer Robert Perry, built in Christchurch by Canterbury Export Marine in 1987. The genesis of the yacht’s design came by way of Peter Rachtman, a New Zealander born in America. Peter had a rich history in finding markets for products, or probably more correctly, finding products that suited the market. From a background in the US entertainment industry, Peter moved to New Zealand in 1979 and, after buying a yacht and cruising around Tonga and Fiji, he took a keen interest in our marine industry. He could see great New Zealand products that needed help getting exported. He set up a company in Seattle (So-Pac) to import and promote New Zealand products. Peter was good friends with yacht designer…